Buck Fever versus Target Panic
Posted by Bryan on September 23, 2007
I’ve read many articles that suggest ‘Buck Fever’ and ‘Target Panic’ are virtually the same phenomenon. As a result, most advice for Buck Fever stems from that of Target Panic.
My opinion differs from most that I have read. I believe these two phenomena are distinctly different. As of right now, this is only my opinion. I hope to study these issues further over the course of my career (I’m currently looking for sponsors to fund the research…any takers?).
Basis for my opinion: Target shooting and hunting are very different in their nature. The targets differ, and most notably, the environments differ. By environments, I am referring to the nature of target shooting and hunting. The primary difference seems to be that when you target shoot, you know your target, and you know when you will shoot. In hunting, the nature of your target, the angle of the shot, and the time your prey presents itself can all vary.
So what? While many techniques for ‘curing’ Target Panic and Buck Fever coincide, I hold the belief that there are also differences. To my knowledge, many techniques unique to Buck Fever have yet to be discussed or even discovered. For example, there is a technique from the world of Psychology that some call ‘Reactive Decision Making’. It’s all about how to make decisions under periods of intense pressure. This notion applies perfectly to hunting. I plan on developing some posts about Reactive Decision Making and related techniques in the future, so stay tuned.
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As someone who suffers from “target panic” I whole heartedly agree with your opinion. When I’m target practicing I utilize a couple exercises to minimize the effects of target panic (they seem to work), however, when I draw back on a deer everything seems to slow down and I feel in control, even with my heart going a country mile a minute.
September 24th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
BNF, I still laugh every time I read your name! Thanks for supporting this viewpoint. Your story illustrates what I’m thinking perfectly. You are fortunate to be in the situation you are. A lot of guys have it reversed: they shoot great at the range, but a buck comes and the Buck (Naked) Fever sets in.
September 24th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
I’ve never experienced target panic on a stationary target. As you said, knowing you’re in complete control of when you shoot helps to minimize the stress. Maybe I’m just lucky that way - who knows? But, shooting at a live target gets easier with experience. Once you’ve missed a few great opportunities to shoot, hopefully you’ll use that experience to help you make decisions faster under pressure. Of course, I’ve gotten to the point in my life when I’d rather not take a shot at all than risk taking a marginal shot just because I was pressed for time. Other oportunities will come if you’re patient. Good post!
September 25th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Dash, You’re right on when you stress the importance of experience. Thanks for your comment!
I have a series of posts coming up on Buck Fever and Children. My goal is to develop techniques that can help young or first-time hunters overcome buck fever (i.e., I want to decrease the learning curve). We’ll see what happens.
September 25th, 2007 at 1:17 pm